When thou shalt sit in cheerless nook, Well; let it be! thro' weal and woe, Thou know'st not now thy future range: SELECTIONS. [FROM DE MONTFORT: A TRAGEDY.] De Montford. Yes, it is ever thus. Undo that veil, And think of him no more. Jane. I know it well, even to a proverb grown, Was the companion of my early days, De Mon. And he forsook thee?—No, I dare not curse him: My heart upbraids me with a crime like his. Jane. Ah! do not thus distress a feeling heart. All sisters are not to the soul entwin'd With equal bands; thine has not watch'd for thee, De Mon. (eagerly.) Ah! has she not? I am too warm- but she of whom I speak TRUE LOVE. [FROM HENRIQUEZ: A TRAGEDY.] Antonio. O blessed words! my dear, my generous love! My heart throbs at the thought, but cannot thank thee. Ah! what of good can with a skulking out-law Mencia. Good may be found for faithful, virtuous love, Ant. Thou shalt not follow me, nor will I fly. DESPAIR. Henriquez. The morn! and what have I to do with morn? The redd'ning sky, the smoking camp, the stir The snorting steed, in harness newly dight, Of every pleasant thing; and that which cheers Does but increase my misery. I loathe the light of heaven: let the night, HANNAH MORE.* THE long and brilliant literary career of Mrs. More has closed, and her "Life," and " Works," are the invaluable possession of the Christian public. She needs no eulogism - she has built her own monument! Probably no woman ever did so much to promote the cause of moral and social improvement, among all classes of people, as this excellent lady has done; certainly no one ever more consistently subserved the best interests of her own sex. It is not, however, in her poetry that the high character of her mind is displayed to the greatest advantage. She possessed more talent than genius, more judgment than imagination; and though her poetry is always respectable, and in its sentiment elevated, yet it seldom rises to the lofty sublimity which astonishes the reader, as it were, with the opening of a new world of beauty and bold imagery nor does it exhibit the brilliancy or breathe the pathos which takes captive the heart and fancy. It is good, in every quality, and seldom merits a higher epithet. But Mrs. More did not make poetry her pursuit. She summoned the muses to her aid, chiefly to promote some * Mrs. More's writings have been published in a variety of forms. The best American edition is that of the Harpers', comprising her "Life and Correspondence," and all her "Literary Works." useful or benevolent object in which she was engaged;"The Search after Happiness," for instance, was written for the benefit of the young ladies at her sister's boarding school; and the "Ballads" and "Tales" to unfold and illustrate religious and moral truths to the poor, ignorant peasantry of her own country. Many of her Poems were written when she was quite young, and to the youthful poetess she will be a safe model to study, because her sentiments are peculiarly calculated to incite a desire for excellence of character, which is far more necessary to female happiness, and much more easily attainable than eminence in poetry. - We place her honored name in our Wreath to be an amulet as well as an ornament; and if it be not properly designated by a flower, it is because it deserves something less perishable - it is the evergreen Pine, the emblem of piety and philosophy, whose leaf time will not have power to wither or that divine "Haemony," whose root, transplanted to a more blessed clime, "Bears a bright golden flower." The "Life" of this illustrious woman is a lesson which our sex can hardly value too highly. We cannot give even the outline of a career, noble as it was useful and active; but as the volumes of her "Memoirs and Correspondence" are accessible to all, we need merely give the most important data. Mrs. More was born in the year 1745. She was the youngest but one of the five daughters of Mr. Jacob More of Stapleton, in the county of Gloucester. His careful and conscientious education of his children was greatly blessed, and has secured for them all, but particularly for one, an enduring record in the hearts of the pious and intelligent. Hannah early exhibited traits of genius, and that disposition to do good, which continued the ruling passion of her life. It was this philanthropy which incited her to undertake most of her varied writings. Benevolence |